With the transport of mineral oils, in particular crude oil, grave pollution of the environment occurs again and again due to oil spills and exiting oil. Such events may have larger extents, for example burst or leaking transport pipelines, but even smaller occurrences such as exiting fuel after accidents are problematic.
Whilst there are different tried and tested methods for removing oil contamination from the surface of water, for example oil binding agent capable of floating, the cleaning of oil-contaminated soil is very difficult. A mechanical removal of the contaminated ground and its subsequent disposal is very costly and requires a lot of effort, even for very small amounts of contamination, and is financially and logistically impossible with greater amounts.
The cleaning of oil-contaminated surfaces is likewise problematic, for example on oil-contaminated rocky coasts and beaches, but also in the inside of oil tanks. A removal of the oil residues with water, e.g. with a high-pressure cleaner, may lead to the contamination being simply conveyed to a different location. A mechanical cleaning of surfaces on the other hand requires much effort. It is regrettably still a widespread practice to flush such fuel and transport tanks of ocean-going ships with seawater for cleaning, and to simply dispose of the arising oil residues in the sea.